Our Environment:

 

Here at Pixley Berries we treasure our surroundings and strive to do all we can to look after the environment.

 

We are increasingly conscious of the need to grow plants in a responsible way. Nettles and other wild plants are given the opportunity to prosper on our headlands, encouraging a natural habitat for butterflies, moths and their larvae. We’re always looking at sustainable practice and consider ourselves early adopters in this respect.

 

We carefully select our fruit growing sites, based on soil type, aspect, height above sea level and surrounding environmental features such as hedgerows and woodland reservoirs of insects and the natural ecology. Our blackcurrants particularly enjoy our deep rich silty clay loams associated with the old hop growing areas of Herefordshire, providing good reserves of moisture and nutrients during our drier summers.

 

We enjoy several hectares of ancient woodland, a number of old coppices and old orchards. Our old hedgerows are thriving with mature trees, oak, ash, thorn, cherry, field maple, willow and alder, and wild rose too. 

 

 

Visitors:

 

Over the last few years Pixley has enjoyed an army of frogs and toads, which demonstrates that our reservoirs are clean and we have thriving habitats and a wide ecology. We also have a reed bed which provides frogs and toads with a safe habitat. Our biodiversity includes barn owls, dormice, otters, green woodpeckers, buzzards, a red kite, bats and tadpoles.

 

We are very proud of our rural heritage and we like to share its beauty with the people around us. During the recent pandemic we have provided “Permissive Access” to all our neighbours and their dogs. This has been much appreciated by many, and we have enjoyed cheery waves from walkers and joggers!

 

Our favourite time of year is May when we see fresh green everywhere, apples and sloe in blossom, and bees and bumble bees busy at work in the berry fields.